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Elf Academy 3: The Enemy Within  by Fiondil

70: Aftermath

It was nearly noon before the Elves and Finlay returned to Wiseman. Aldarion rode with Finlay to keep him company and Vorondur drove Alex’s car, having retrieved the Man’s keys before sending him off with med-evac, and Prince Legolas rode with him. Thus they formed a convoy down the James Dalton Highway. Farrell was not carrying any keys and there was no unaccounted-for vehicle in the parking lot, so they assumed that he had been dropped off by whoever was helping him.

As soon as they reached Wiseman, Glorfindel drove straight for the hospital where they found the Twins waiting for them, along with Dave Michaelson. As soon as he saw the police chief, Glorfindel pulled out Farrell’s phone and handed it to him.

“You may be able to trace the most recent calls to find Felicity Cohen,” he said, having assumed that the Twins would’ve filled the Man in on what had been happening.

Michaelson took the phone and stashed it away in a coat pocket. “Ms Cohen is safely home,” he said.

Everyone gave him surprised looks. “How did that happen?” Glorfindel asked.

“All we know for sure was that she was taken from her apartment on Monday and then released shortly after noon on Tuesday.”

“Farrell’s deadline for Alex,” Finrod said quietly and the others all nodded.

“So she was merely the lure to get him to the tarn, nothing more,” Glorfindel said. “Go on.” He nodded at Michaelson who resumed his narrative.

“Her captors dropped her off in the middle of Nolan. She went to the post office, told them what had happened and they rang the sheriff’s office. Carl sent someone out to pick her up. She was brought here for observation and then released this morning. I have one of my women officers staying with her for now.”

“Does she know who kidnapped her?” Finrod asked.

Michaelson shook his head. “They wore ski masks the whole time she was with them. They were very professional, very polite, offered her no violence, fed her, allowed her to use the bathroom, that sort of thing. They did not speak to her or explain themselves so she has no idea who or why.”

“Well the who is obvious and the why is too,” Glorfindel said. “How’s Alex?” This was addressed to the Twins.

“He’s holding his own. Farrell, too, but Alex seems to be in better shape,” Elladan said. “Farrell has yet to regain any sort of consciousness. Alex keeps slipping in and out. We put him into healing sleep.”

“As soon as I drop everyone off, I’m going to go around to Felicity’s and explain to her what’s been going on,” Glorfindel said. “She deserves that much.”

“I’m going to need statements from all of you,” Michaelson said.

“Good luck with that one,” Elrohir whispered to his brother. Elladan snorted in amusement.

As if on cue, half the Valinórean Elves began speaking Quenya and the other half Sindarin, all of them giving Michaelson wide-eyed, innocent looks. Michaelson gave them a sour grin. “Cute,” Then in carefully enunciated Quenya he said, “You will give statements to my people”. And then, for good measure, repeated himself in passable Sindarin. The Elves gave him looks of respect. Glorfindel grinned. “I’ll see that they cooperate, Chief,” he said.

“I’ve alerted the FBI,” Michaelson said. “That agent is still on her way. She’ll be here later today. They’re insisting on taking over the case and having Farrell removed to a prison hospital.”

“Well, Farrell’s in no condition to be moved as yet,” Elrohir said authoritatively. “Nor will we give our permission for them to take him. He’s in your custody, Dave. Handcuff him to the bed if you must, but right now he’s not a danger to anyone. We can’t even say that he’ll recover completely. He may remain in a coma for the rest of his natural life. There’s no way to tell at this point.”

“Which means the trial is put off indefinitely,” Michaelson said.

“Which is probably just as well, all things considered,” Glorfindel said, “though there are still the other three Men.”

“Rumor has it that the Agency is negotiating with the courts to have the charges dropped and them released,” Michaelson said. “There may never be any trial.”

“Which is all to the good,” Vorondur said. “The fewer outside eyes that are trained on Wiseman and its doings, the better. Loren, I’ll go with you when you visit Felicity. She may require counseling.”

Glorfindel nodded. “Keep me posted,” he said to the Twins. “David.” He nodded at Michaelson and the Elves and Finlay trooped out, went to their respective vehicles and continued on to Edhellond.

Glorfindel gave a brief synopsis of what had happened to those who had remained behind before going upstairs to take a shower and change his clothes. Vorondur, meanwhile, called his wife who had returned to their house after spending the night at Edhellond, explaining what was going on, and she agreed to come over with clean clothes for him. Once Glorfindel was done with the shower, he took one as well. Finrod checked in with Nick at the bookstore and Nick told him not to bother coming in until the next day, so he decided to join Glorfindel and Vorondur in visiting Felicity and went to take his own shower.

Thus, a half an hour or so later, the three ellyn, freshly showered and clothed, headed back out and drove to the apartment complex where Felicity Cohen lived. They were greeted at the door by Detective Phillips who recognized Glorfindel and let them in after gaining Felicity’s permission.

“How are you doing?” Glorfindel asked her once they were inside and seated in the living room. Felicity was dressed casually in jeans and a sweatshirt.

“What’s happening?” she demanded. “No one will tell me anything.” She glared at the detective, who shrugged, standing out of the way.

“It’s a bit complicated,” Glorfindel said. “You were kidnapped by people working for or with Farrell.”

“Farrell! The guy who escaped from prison?”

The Elves nodded.

“But why? They held me for one day and then let me go. No ransom, nothing. It makes no sense.”

“You were the lure, Felicity,” Glorfindel said softly. “Farrell left a note for Alex to find, threatening to kill you if he did not meet with Farrell at a particular time and place.”

“Alex! Is he all right? Can I see him?”

“He’s fine,” Glorfindel assured her. “He’s at St. Luke’s at the moment and getting the best of care. Right now, we’re more concerned with you.”

“Me? Why?” She looked upon them in confusion.

“You were kidnapped and held against your will,” Vorondur said, giving her a clinical look. “That had to have been very traumatic for you.”

“I’ll live,” Felicity said with a sniff. “Trust me, I’ve been through worse.”

The three Elves gave her surprised looks. “Well, if you ever want to talk about it, my door is always open,” Vorondur said.

“Thanks,” Felicity said. “I appreciate the offer, but really, I’m fine, and as soon as I can lose the chaperone, I’ll be even finer.” She glared daggers at Detective Phillips, who just stood there smiling.

Finrod turned to Glorfindel with a grin. “Remind you of anyone?” he asked in Quenya.

“You mean your sister?” Glorfindel shot back in the same language. “You bet. Galadriel could run rings around us all without getting her hair mussed. I think the lovely Ms Cohen is cut from the same cloth.”

Vorondur chuckled in agreement.

“Hey! What are you saying? Not fair speaking a language others don’t know,” Felicity protested.

“We were comparing you to Finrod’s sister, Galadriel,” Vorondur said in fluent German, surprising Felicity. “The Lady of the Golden Wood was always someone to be reckoned with.”

Glorfindel nodded in agreement and then spoke in English. “Can you tell us what happened to you?”

“I gave my statement to the police,” Felicity replied. “There’s not much to tell. I never saw their faces and they were wearing gloves. They were very polite, even apologetic, but they never explained themselves. They kept me locked in a room with the windows boarded over so I never got a look at the outside. When they released me, they blindfolded me before bringing me outside. We got into a van, I think, as I had to step up to get inside, and then we drove around for a few minutes before they stopped and helped me out. I was told to count to twenty out loud before taking off the blindfold and warned not to remove it beforehand and then I heard the van drive off. I did exactly as they said and when I removed the blindfold I was standing in the middle of Nolan. I knew that because the post office was directly in front of me.”

“And no one saw anything?” Glorfindel asked, looking puzzled. “Surely, there would’ve been people about.”

Felicity shook her head. “The street was deserted. If the police found anyone who saw anything, they’ve not told me. Now, I’ve told you what I know. You do the same. How’s Alex? You said he was at St. Luke’s. Is he okay?”

“He’s alive,” Vorondur said, “as is Farrell, but they are both in comas.”

“What happened?” she demanded, glaring at them all, so Glorfindel told her, beginning with Alex coming to the office to find the card and ending with the med-evac, though he left out most of the details about how they had spent the night. When he was done, Felicity just sat there, trying to process it all. Finally, she stood. “I want to see him,” she said.

“He’s in healing sleep,” Glorfindel said. “We’re hoping that will help, but we have no idea when or if he will ever come out of it.”

“I still want to see him,” she insisted. “He risked his life for me, not knowing that by the time he reached the tarn, I was already in Nolan waiting for the sheriff. Can he hear me in this healing sleep?”

“Supposedly,” Vorondur answered then turned to the others. “Perhaps hearing her voice, knowing she’s safe, will help Alex come fully out of his state.”

“Worth a shot,” Glorfindel said with a nod.

“I can make arrangements for you to see him,” Vorondur said to Felicity.

“Can we go now?” she asked, leaping up from her chair.

“Tomorrow,” Vorondur said firmly, also standing. “I will call you and let you know when.”

“I should be teaching tomorrow, but everyone is telling me to cancel my classes for the week and chill out.”

“Very good advice,” Vorondur said. “You think you can handle things, pretend none of this happened, that it’s business as usual, but it’s not. Whether you admit it to yourself or not, what happened to you was frightening and traumatic. Did they give you anything at the hospital to help you sleep?”

“Yeah, I’ve got a prescription, but—”

“But nothing,” Vorondur said firmly. “Let me see what was prescribed.”

Felicity hesitated for a moment and then excused herself, returning a couple minutes later with the medicine, handing it to Vorondur, who looked at it and nodded. “I know it says take one or two, but take only one. Two is overkill and will leave you feeling disjointed and confused.” He handed the bottle back to her. “I’ll call you this evening and let you know when you can see Alex. I’m assuming you’re staying with Ms Cohen for now, Sharon.” He turned to the detective, who had remained silent throughout the conversation. She nodded. Felicity grimaced.

“Good enough.” He pulled out his wallet and removed a business card, handing it to the Woman. “Call me if there’s any trouble of a psychological kind. I’m sure you’ve been trained to know what signs of distress to look for.”

“Yes, sir,” Sharon Phillips said as she accepted the card.

“Hey! I’m right here!” Felicity protested. “I can take care of myself.”

“No doubt,” Vorondur said with a smile, “but just in case, it’s always good to have back-up.” He turned to Glorfindel and Finrod. “Are we done here?”

“Yes, I think we are,” Glorfindel said, then he took Felicity’s hands in his. “Felicity, I rarely give Mortals advice, but I’m giving it now. Take it slow. Take your time. Your students will still be there on Monday and it’s early enough in the semester that they won’t miss much and you can easily catch them up. Right now, concentrate on yourself. You can deny it all you want, but what happened to you was traumatic and it will not surprise me, or anyone else for that matter, if you experience nightmares for a while. Ron is here to help. We all are. Don’t shut us out. Enjoy the company while you can.” He nodded to the police woman. “If you don’t want to talk about it to any of us, I’m sure Sharon is a very good listener, aren’t you, Sharon?” He turned, releasing Felicity’s hands.

“Top in my class in how to listen sympathetically to the crime victim,” the detective said with a grin, and then became more sober, going to Felicity and taking one of her hands. “All kidding aside, Felicity, I’m here to help. I’m a shoulder to cry on and an ear to listen. You don’t have to put on a brave front for me or anyone else. Frankly, the best thing you could do for yourself right now is to let go and let it all out. No one will think less of you for doing so, least of all me. You were violated. Oh, I know they never touched you, but you were violated nonetheless and somewhere deep inside you’re screaming. Time to let the scream out, dear, and I’ll be here to hold you when you do.”

Felicity just nodded and Sharon patted her hand in comfort.

“We’ll leave you, then,” Glorfindel said kindly. “No. We’ll see ourselves out.”

****

Special Agent Terri Colson was cold and unhappy and that was always a dangerous combination with her. A native of North Dakota, she was used to cold, but that did not mean she liked it. At the moment, though, she was experiencing cold of a different nature, being stonewalled by the local police and the doctors who refused to release the prisoner into her custody. The police she could handle, country bumpkins who probably never heard of GPS and thought Sherlock Holmes was a real person. No, them she could handle; it was the twin doctors who had her Irish up, as her sainted grandmother used to say. And it didn’t help that they were drop-dead gorgeous with the voices of angels. Nor did it help that they apparently were not impressed with her, which was really insulting. Even that young Doctor Stoner had gaped like a schoolboy as she sauntered into the hospital. Terri Colson was no slouch in the looks department and she knew it and used it to her advantage whenever necessary.

But apparently these two medical hunks weren’t impressed. If anything, they seemed more amused by her attempts to first intimidate and then seduce them into letting her have Farrell, and that really got her pantyhose in a twist, as her mother liked to say.

“I can get a court order to release Farrell to me,” she said to Elladan and Elrohir.

“I don’t care if you get an order direct from God Himself, Special Agent Colson,” Elladan said as coldly as he could. “Mr. Farrell is in no condition to be moved. He’s not going anywhere and there’s a police officer on watch at all times.”

“Police,” she sneered and both twins raised identical eyebrows at the implied slur.

“Well, you can go to Judge Harrison, if you like,” Elrohir put in, “but you’ll get no joy from him.”

“Why’s that?” Terri asked, sounding and looking frustrated.

“Because Judge Harrison is no one’s fool and much too old to be taken in by a pretty face, Special Agent Colson.”

She turned at the strange voice behind her and felt her eyes drop out of their sockets at the sight of the golden Adonis standing before her, his blue-gray eyes looking upon her with mild amusement.

Behind her, one of the twins (she did not know which one) said, “Anything we can do for you, Loren?”

Loren smiled and Terri Colson felt herself grow faint at the sight. “Just stopped by to check on things. Ron’s making arrangements for Felicity to visit Alex tomorrow. We’re hoping that once he realizes she’s okay then he’ll start coming out of his state.”

“Makes sense,” Elrohir said. “It can’t hurt, that’s for sure.”

“And Farrell?” Loren asked.

“Still in a coma,” Elladan answered. “Which brings us to Special Agent Colson who is insisting on having him transferred to the prison hospital in Fairbanks.”

“Ah, yes,” Loren said and Terri gulped when his gaze settled on her. She felt suddenly naked and forced herself not to pull her coat closed. “As I said, Special Agent Colson, you can go to Judge Harrison, but he’s not going to issue the warrant, not if I tell him not to.”

“Who are you to order a federal judge around?” Terri spat out.

“Someone you don’t ever want to antagonize,” Loren purred softly and Terri gulped again. She felt a sudden need to go take a very cold shower or at least throw herself into the nearest snow bank. It was getting hard to breathe and she desperately wanted to take more than just her coat off.

“He can’t be the only judge here, though,” she managed to say.

“The only one who counts,” Loren said. “Now, we appreciate your orders, but Mr. Farrell really is in no condition to be moved. So, I suggest you return to Anchorage and let us handle things here. If and when Mr. Farrell ever recovers enough to be moved, I’m sure Chief Michaelson is more than capable of handling the transfer.”

“This is most irregular,” Terri said.

“Perhaps, but it is how it will go,” Loren said. “Now, I think you’ve taken up enough of the doctors’ time. Off you go now.”

And Special Agent Terri Colson never understood how she ended up simply leaving the hospital without making any protest, but went meekly back to her room at the Goldmine Inn and reported back to her superiors.

****

Vorondur arranged to pick up Felicity and Detective Phillips at ten the next morning, insisting that he needed to be there while she visited.

“It was the only way to get them to agree to let you see him, since, technically, you’re not family,” he explained to her.

Now they were entering ICU and Vorondur stopped at the desk to sign them in. Detective Phillips agreed to wait for them. “You certainly don’t need me there,” she said and took a seat, picking up a National Geographic magazine to occupy herself with.

Inside the room, Felicity hesitated before going to the bed to look down at Alex hooked up to the monitors, which Vorondur checked automatically. “Take your time,” he told her gently.

“What should I say?” Felicity asked, suddenly undecided.

“Whatever you want. The words don’t matter. He only needs to know that you’re here and you’re safe. That is the most important thing for him right now. He was willing to risk his life to save yours.”

“I know,” she said and then she brushed a hand gently through Alex’s hair. “Alex, can you hear me? It’s Felicity, Felicity Cohen. I’m safe. Truly. They didn’t hurt me. Alex. It’s time to come back. Your students are missing you. I’m missing you. Come on, Alex. Time to wake up and smell the coffee.”

She continued brushing her hand through his hair as she spoke. At first, there was no change. Alex did not move and the monitors remained steady, but then Alex shifted his position slightly, letting out a soft sigh. His eyes opened and closed and it was doubtful he actually saw anything.

“Alex?” Felicity whispered. “Alex!”

Alex opened his eyes again, staring up at her, saying nothing, but then he smiled as he drifted back into sleep.

“Good,” Vorondur said encouragingly, standing on the other side of the bed. “Very good, indeed.”

“Is he going to be okay, though?” Felicity asked worriedly.

“Now that he knows you’re safe, I’m sure he’ll make a full recovery,” Vorondur assured her. “Now, let’s leave him to his rest.”

Felicity brushed Alex’s hair some more and whispered in German, “You get better or I’ll make you sorry, you hear me?” She glanced up at Vorondur, giving him an apologetic look. Vorondur just smiled knowingly as he came around the bed and took her by the elbow and led her out. They retrieved Detective Phillips and Vorondur returned the two Women to Felicity’s apartment, promising her that he would call and let her know when Alex woke. Then he returned home and found Ercassë making lunch.

“I’ve made some chicken noodle soup and do you want ham and cheese or roast beef?”

“What I want is you,” Vorondur said, putting his arms around his wife and snuggling her neck.

“Well, let’s eat first and play after,” she said with a laugh. “Ham and cheese or roast beef?”

Vorondur sighed as he let her go, but the impish look she gave him restored his humor and he smiled. “Daeron called Amroth to let him know it’s safe to come home,” he told her as he helped her put their lunch together, deciding in the end to have both kinds of sandwiches. “And Derek was informed as well. He should be home by now.”

“It’ll be nice to have them back,” Ercassë said as they sat to eat. “This place is too quiet, especially when you’re not here.”

“Well, I’m here now,” Vorondur said.

“Yes, you are.” And the look she gave him held many promises.





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